Archive for the 'Lewis Grizzard' Category

Author and humorist Lewis Grizzard famously refused to write using a computer, so the fact that a number of his best-loved titles are now available as ebooks carries no lack of irony. NewSouth has re-issued Grizzard’s They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat and Elvis is Dead and I Don’t Feel So Good Myself — both long out of print — in both paperback and ebook formats, with two more titles on the way. If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I’m Going to Nail My Feet to the Ground and I Haven’t Understood Anything Since 1962 will both be available in print and ebook in early 2012.

News of the Grizzard ebooks has the South buzzing — and indeed orders are pouring in from all across the country. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s Arts & Culture blog called the new publications “a veritable renaissance in the Southern humorist’s work.”

“Fans,” the paper continued, “should be feeling pretty good themselves right about now.”

(This, in kind contrast to columnist Dave Lieber’s recent piece, “Why papers are dying: Lewis Grizzard died first,” in which Lieber praises Grizzard’s writing and humor, but ends with the statement that Grizzard is “not talked about anymore.” We respectfully suggest the reports of the death of Grizzard’s popularity may be greatly exaggerated.)

The Journal-Constitution‘s Buzz column with Jennifer Britt and the Wilmington, North Carolina Star-NewsBookmarks column also chimed in about the ebooks.

Grizzard’s widow Dedra has been the driving force behind the reissued books, spearheading the resurgence almost twenty years after Grizzard passed away. In interviews on Newsmakers with Tim Bryant on 1340 WGAU in Athens, Georgia, and The Rick Humphries Show in 640 WGST, Dedra talked about how she and NewSouth fit when she found a publisher that would reissue Grizzard’s books right away, instead of simply holding the rights.

Dedra told Rick Humphries that she believed part of Grizzard’s appeal was that he could write about “things we think about but don’t necessarily know how to verbalize.” She and Tim Bryant spoke about how the ebooks might help Grizzard gain a new generation of fans.

“Lewis’s work is universal, it’s timeless,” she said. “He’s very funny and writes about the truth of the human condition. I hope we have a lot of younger fans that are listening and will download a book and have a taste of Lewis.”

After years spent published by New York houses, the distinctly Southern flavor of humorist Lewis Grizzard’s books has come home to the South. In the article “NewSouth Reissues Southern Humorist’s Oeuvre,”Publishers Weekly‘s Marc Schultz spotlights the unique connection between Grizzard and NewSouth, which has joined with the Grizzard estate to bring all the writer’s books back to print.

Despite Lewis Grizzard’s status as a perennial bestseller, many of his books had been out of print for decades. As the Publishers Weekly article relates, Grizzard’s widow Dedra had promised Grizzard she’d “keep his work alive,” but had yet to find the right publisher. A friend directed her to NewSouth Books.

“I spent a lot of time looking for publishers,” Dedra told Publishers Weekly. “They either did not get Lewis, his works, or Southern heritage and traditions, or they were too small to market it, or they wanted to hold the rights.” After she spoke with NewSouth, Dedra said, “I literally felt at home. I had found what I was looking for: they published good books with a dedicated staff committed to excellence.” NewSouth publisher Suzanne La Rosa explained that “we were immediately interested because [Grizzard’s voice] is a unique expression of a particular aspect of southern culture, and his popularity is clearly ongoing.”

NewSouth’s bringing something new to the deal, too. In addition to returning to print Grizzard’s They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat and Elvis is Dead and I Don’t Feel So Good Myself (with If I Ever Get Back to Georgia and Daddy Was a Pistol and I’m a Son of a Gun coming next), NewSouth is also releasing these titles for the first time as ebooks. The books are available in all the major ebook formats, often before the print books are available, as part of NewSouth’s commitment to make all of our titles available to the widest audience possible and across all reading platforms. Already the Grizzard ebooks are some of our bestselling digital titles.

Dedra recalled that when Grizzard “worked with his New York publishers and he faced countless nightmares. But [La Rosa] gets it! I really could not be happier.”

The sound of the Buckeye Band filtered through the air this past weekend in Moreland, Georgia, as friends and fans gathered to remember Lewis Grizzard at the first Lewis Grizzard’s Hometown Reunion festival. As covered by the Newnan Times-Herald, the weekend ended with a “Toast to Lewis Grizzard,” featuring remembrances of Grizzard by colleagues and relatives, including Grizzard’s widow Dedra. During the weekend, Dedra also signed copies of Grizzard’s They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat, newly re-released by NewSouth Books.

In an earlier interview with the Times-Herald, Dedra described her plans to republish other of her husband’s books with NewSouth, including Elvis Is Dead and I Don’t Feel So Well Myself, If I Ever Get Back to Georgia I’m Going to Nail My Feet to the Ground, and My Daddy Was a Pistol and I’m a Son of a Gun. Dedra called the latter book her favorite of the four.

Mary Ann Cauthen, a cousin of Grizzard’s who grew up with him, told the Athens Banner-Herald that Grizzard “had a way to really get to the bottom of something, of really what most common people are thinking. He had a way to say it and get it in print that the average person on the street can’t do without getting in trouble.”

The Hometown Reunion weekend also included an exhibit of Grizzard memorabilia, a parade, barbeque and grits-cooking contests, and a showing of Bill Oberst’s one-man Lewis Grizzard show. Carol Chancey of Cloudland Canyon Entertainment, organizer of the Lewis Grizzard’s Hometown Reunion, says she hopes to make the festival an annual event in Moreland.

The Bulldog Nation enjoyed a touch of humor amidst their tough opening season when Dedra Grizzard, wife of the late Southern humorist Lewis Grizzard, spoke with the DawgDial radio call-in show.

Considering the University of Georgia’s current 1-4 record before the upcoming game against Tennessee, Dedra offered that her husband “certainly would have had a lot to write about.”

In the interview with Radi Nabulsi and Anthony Dasher, Dedra recalled her husband’s appreciation for UGA football, and discussed the numerous upcoming events celebrating Grizzard’s life, including the re-release of his book They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat by NewSouth Books.

“Lewis was a devout worshipper of the Church of the Sacred Bulldog,” Dedra quipped. She is herself both a Georgia and Tennessee fan, and she recalled one occasion where Grizzard offered her money and even a red sports car if she would not wear Tennessee colors to a Georgia game; Dedra declined.

She also talked about the time Grizzard hadn’t been scheduled a flight to a Georgia/Auburn game, and so he found a seat on a small plane, despite that it was carrying a corpse, in order to fly to Auburn.

In a funny, poignant moment, Dedra also described how she and a friend had to sneak in to UGA’s Sanford Stadium to sprinkle part of the late Grizzard’s ashes on the 50-yard line — only to find that the lines had been removed that day for construction. As they hurried to finish, Dedra’s friend offered, “Just throw the ashes in the middle — Lewis will find the 50!”

Nabulsi called Grizzard a “wordsmith,” and said that “everybody needs that voice of the Bulldog Nation and no one has been able to fill it. In other words, we still miss him greatly.”

Dedra invited all Grizzard fans to attend the Lewis Grizzard’s Hometown Reunion festival on October 16 and 17 in Moreland and Newnan, Georgia. Among the events will be barbeque and grits-cooking contests, music by the Buck Eye Band, and a showing of actor Bill Oberst, Jr.’s one-man Lewis Grizzard tribute show, Lewis Grizzard: In His Own Words.

Dedra will also sign copies of the re-release of They Tore Out My Heart at the festival. Alabama Public Radio’s Don Noble said “we should be grateful to NewSouth for making this little book available, so we can again hear Grizzard’s sardonic and insightful voice,” calling Grizzard a rare “consistently funny writer who gave a lot of people a lot of pleasure.”

The DawgDial radio program is available in podcast for listening online. Learn more about Lewis Grizzard’s Hometown Reunion at www.lewisgrizzard.com. They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat is available from NewSouth Books, Amazon, or your favorite local or online book retailer.

Widely regarded as one of the South’s most beloved humorists and storytellers, Lewis Grizzard is back in print through NewSouth Books. Wildly popular in its first run, They Tore Out My Heart and Stomped That Sucker Flat sold over 100,000 copies and was a New York Times bestseller.

In They Tore Out My Heart, the late Lewis Grizzard recounts in a series of heartening yet undeniably humorous vignettes the lifelong struggles of his heart—both physical and emotional, real and imagined—that led to major heart surgery in his mid-thirties. From musings of early unrequited attempts at love to three marriages and divorces to the early detection of heart troubles that would follow him throughout his life, Grizzard manages to tackle weighty issues with his characteristically irreverent sense of humor.

In addition to NewSouth’s republication of They Tore Out My Heart, Grizzard’s hometown of Moreland, Georgia is holding a tribute festival in his honor on October 16-17. With a wide range of events planned, there’s something for every Grizzard fan at the festival. A Grizzard look alike contest is planned, as well as a cooking contest involving his favorite foods, namely grits. Several of Grizzard’s longtime friends will host a roast-style storytelling time, and Bill Oberst, Jr., a longtime Grizzard tribute actor will perform his live stage show over the weekend.

Grizzard’s widow Dedra, who also assisted in setting up the festival, will be present to sign copies of the newly republished They Tore Out My Heart.